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Popcorn flavor is better if you use the ‘real deal'

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Posted: Nov. 12, 2017 12:01 am

‘Tis the season for giving thanks, and reveling in the rich flavors of the harvest. Thanks to Snoopy, who serves popcorn to his friends in the television classic, "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving," my thoughts turn to "party food" when I sit down to watch the Macy's parade on turkey day.

Popcorn is a most appropriate, true-blue, all-American snack. According to heirloom vegetable expert William Woys Weaver, Native Americans grew several varieties of "popping maize." In other words, it really isn't such a far-fetched notion that popcorn was shared during that first Thanksgiving celebration.

For centuries, farmers learned from native peoples and grew their own popcorn, and the American snack food had real corn flavor. Then came commercially-developed popcorn, which convinced us to buy "lighter, fluffier" (read: bigger kernels for holding more butter and salt). Everyone bought into the "super" supermarket snack.

Popcorn was not a favorite of mine until some friends who had lived in Kentucky for many years brought home a big sack of "special" popcorn after a return visit to the Bluegrass State. The flavor of that (smaller) popped corn was far superior to any commercial brand I'd ever tasted. It was"cornier" and required far less butter to feel like an indulgence. Compared to the corn from a small farm in Kentucky, the brands on supermarket shelves are tasteless, requiring loads of melted butter and salt.

In recent years, a handful of American farmers have made heirloom, non-GMO varieties of popping corn available to anyone with access to the internet. Tiny But Mighty is a company that sells only one type of popcorn: an heirloom that one family in Iowa has been enjoying -- and saving -- for more than a century. From their website: "Our popcorn is actually about half the size of regular/conventional popcorn varieties. It grows on ears that are only three inches to 4 inches in length … Smaller ears produce smaller, more dense kernels, which produce a naturally flavorful popcorn -- hence the name, Tiny But Mighty Popcorn!"

They sell three types of products: kernels for popping on the stove or in a popper, flavored microwave popcorns (without all the dangerous chemicals) and bagged, already popped flavored corn. Since small doesn't have to mean less flavor (cherry tomatoes come to mind) and they use real butter flavoring (no artificial flavorings or additives) I have ordered a sample.

If you love the convenience of popping corn in the microwave but are concerned about the chemicals used in the packaging and aren't interested in shopping for heirlooms, Alton Brown of the Food Network has proven that we can use "regular" popcorn kernels in an ordinary brown or white paper lunch bag, and pop it perfectly in the microwave.

Based on his recommendations, I toss 1/4 cup kernels with one to two teaspoons of corn oil before I put them in the bag. The main issue, of course, is how to safely seal the bag. He insists that it is okay to use a stapler, but even using those tiny bits of metal in a microwave makes me nervous. That's why I use wooden toothpicks. I fold over the top of the bag twice and, if the paper is too thick to pierce with the toothpick itself, I'll poke through the bag first with the point of a small knife.

Next, place the bag in the microwave and cook on high for two to three minutes. The popcorn kernels will begin popping in about 30 seconds. Stop the microwave and remove bag when there are two-to-three-second gaps between pops. In most microwave ovens, the whole process will take two to three minutes. In mine, it takes two minutes and 15 seconds.

Take care when opening the bag -- either tearing the paper or removing the toothpick. Hot steam from the corn can burn your hands. Pour the popped corn into a bowl and season with salt and butter to taste.

For those of you inspired to consider growing your own popcorn next year, Weaver writes that "Pennsylvania Butter-Flavored" was listed in farm and garden publications before 1885, and explains, "There are no commercial popcorns quite like it. It tastes buttered without being buttered." Heirloom popcorns disappeared from seed lists for decades, but slowly reappeared as people gained an appreciation for the variety of flavors that "antique" foods bring to our diets. And there are some gorgeous red, black, pink, and multicolored popcorns we can now grow. If you are interested in trying some next year, check the seed lists of Native Seeds nativeseeds.org, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange southernexposure.com and Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds rareseeds.com.

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Vicki Johnson is a gardening columnist for the New Jersey Herald. She can be reached at vjgarden@gmail.com or athomeinsussexcounty.com.